Coaldale clinched the 1943 championship of the Panther Valley Baseball League yesterday afternoon on its own diamond in rather easy fashion, nailing down the coveted pennant without even picking up a bat or ball.
The Tigers of Manager Tillie Salvadore were leading Lansford two games to one in the league’s best-out-of-five playoff series and the two teams were slated to meet yesterday in the fourth contest of the spirited series featuring neighborhood rivals.
However, at 2:30, when the umpire called “Play Ball,” Lansford was unable to field a team and the umpire-in-chief awarded the home club a 9-0 forfeit victory, giving Coaldale its third victory of the series and the title of the six-team circuit.
According to reports, the rains of yesterday morning led Lansford players to believe that the game would be postponed. However, when the rains subsided and the game was still on, Lansford management attempted to round up its team, but found that both of the club’s catchers had gone out of town for the day, leaving the Panthers without a capable backstop for the critical contest.
